BOSTON — Wentworth Institute of Technology outscored the University of New England 3-1 in the final quarter to take a 12-10 Commonwealth Coast Conference men’s lacrosse victory in the teams’ regular-season finale Wednesday afternoon at Sweeney Field.

In a must-win situation for both squads, the Leopards (4-4, 7-8 CCC) grabbed the sixth and final playoff spot for the upcoming CCC Championship, which is slated to start Saturday. The Nor’easters concluded their season at 5-12 overall, 2-6 in conference play.

Steve Glover scored a match-high five goals, including the go-ahead marker early in the fourth, to lead the way for the host Leopards. Ryan Coakley finished with a five-point afternoon with three goals and two assists.

Nick Gross and Patrick Wolfe notched three goals apiece for the Nor’easters, who led in shots (39-36), ground balls (47-40) and face-offs won (17-8). Geoff Bruno recorded a pair of assists.

The contest was tight the entire way, with the score tied at five at halftime and tied at nine after three quarters. 

Glover gave Wentworth the lead (10-9) for good with 2:23 elapsed in the final frame, notching an unassisted goal ”“ his fifth of the afternoon. Steve Farmer would give WIT a two-goal margin, carrying a clear attempt into the offensive zone and finding the cage. Coakley made the score 12-9 with 5:53 remaining before Sam Cloutier broke Wentworth’s spurt with a goal coming at the 4:27 mark. The Nor’easters were unable to convert again the rest of the way.

UNE had battled back from a three-goal deficit in the third after WIT scored four of the first five goals of the period to establish a 9-6 margin. Andy Curro started the run with an unassisted goal, which was followed by consecutive tallies from Gross.

Jared Proulx had 16 saves to record the win in goal for Wentworth, while John Dusel stopped 17 shots for the Nor’easters.

Big Blue received a career-high nine ground balls from Connor Leggett and eight from Dan O’Gorman. That pair was 17-for-25 on the draw.

Women’s lacrosse rolls to win

BOSTON — Hannah Warren scored three goals as the University of New England Nor’easters built an early 7-0 lead on their way to a 19-3 Commonwealth Coast Conference women’s lacrosse victory over Wentworth Institute of Technology on a chilly Wednesday evening at Sweeney Field.

The Nor’easters end the regular season with an overall mark of 9-7, 4-4 in conference play. Wentworth finishes up at 3-12 (0-8 CCC).

Warren finished with four goals to lead all players. She added a pair of assists to post a five-point evening. Gina Newsome scored three times for UNE, while Nikki Smith, Jessica Deedon and Katie Cawley added two goals apiece.  

Pam Mudge collected two of Wentworth’s three markers.

Warren converted three free-position attempts in the opening 6:52 to help Big Blue put the game away early. The Nor’easters would go on to score eight more times before halftime to establish a 14-2 lead heading into intermission.

UNE maintained a double-digit advantage the rest of the way to keep the clock running in the second half.

Courtney Kendall and Lauryn Huck each played a half in goal and combined to make 14 stops for the Nor’easters. Newsome paced UNE with four ground balls, while rookie Tori Stocks came off the bench to register four draw controls.

The Nor’easters are seeded fifth for the CCC Championship and will travel to Bristol, R.I. to take on fourth-seeded Roger Williams University in an opening round match Saturday at 6:30 p.m.

Softball splits with Bowdoin

BIDDEFORD — Allie Frazier laced a two-RBI single through the left side in the bottom of the 7th to give the University of New England a 3-2 victory in the nightcap of a non-conference softball doubleheader with Bowdoin College on Wednesday evening at Claude Dubois Field. The Polar Bears took the opener by a score of 6-0.

The Nor’easters conclude the regular-season with a 23-15 overall mark, and will begin play in the Commonwealth Coast Conference Championship on Monday. The double elimination bracket and tournament schedule will be released late Thursday.

Bowdoin moves to 19-11 on the year with the split.

Game two was scoreless until the top of the 4th, when sophomore Dimitria Spathakis put a one-out double into left-center, scoring classmate Katie Gately , who had led off the frame for the Polar Bears with a double down the left field line.

Bowdoin added one with two down in the 6th as Spathakis singled to right, bringing in first-year Alana Luzzio. Luzzio had reached on the previous play with a single to left, and then stole second.

Big Blue got back within one (2-1) in the last half of the 6th. Senior Amanda Vaudreuil slotted a one-out single through the left side, moved to second after a walk, advanced to third on a wild pitch, and scored on a groundout to the pitcher.

The Polar Bears threatened to extend its lead in the 7th, getting runners to first and third with one out. But a flyout to shallow left and a groundout to short kept the margin at one heading into UNE’s last chance.

Senior Jessica Potter took the first pitch she saw into right field to start the Nor’easters’ rally. After fouling off three pitches facing an 0-2 count, first-year Syndey Helmbrecht pushed a bunt just off the right side of the pitching circle, allowing herself to reach safely and pinch runner Syndey Farley to advance to second. Both moved up one base on a wild pitch, setting the stage for Frazier, who put the pay-off pitch into left to drive in both Farley and Helmbrecht.

UNE first-year Katelyn Austin improved to 6-3 with the win, striking out four against seven hits and two walks. Helmbrecht had two of the six hits surrendered by Bowdoin first-year Emily Griffin, who fanned four in the setback.

Junior Adriane Krul matched Spathakis with two hits for the Polar Bears. 

Game one was mostly under the control of Bowdoin senior Melissa DellaTorre, who struck out eight while giving up five hits and one free pass to bump her ledger up to 6-4.

The Nor’easters really only challenged the shutout in the 4th, when sophomore Jess Lemos roped a double into the right-center gap, putting two runners in scoring position. Frazier worked a walk after fouling off the first two pitches she saw, loading the bases, but DellaTorre left the next batter looking at strike three to end the inning.

The Polar Bears scored one in the 3rd, three in the 4th, and two in the 5th to arrive at their final cushion. In those frames alone, the visitors combined six hits with two walks and three UNE errors to gain the advantage on the scoreboard.

Bowdoin received two hits each from Krul, Luzzio, and Griffin. Luzzio, who scored twice, recorded the second of back-to-back triples into right-center during the 5th, following junior Cielle Collins.

Lemos added a infield single in the 2nd to pace the hosts with two hits. Vaudreuil, Potter, and sophomore Amanda Vallante had one hit apiece, before adding another later in the day.

Big Blue sophomore pitcher Lauren Doneski was charged with one earned run in the loss, striking out two.